Wednesday, 27 December 2006

Arnold Schwarzenegger breaks his leg

Terminator star has op after Christmas skiiing accident

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger will require crutches, screws to secure his thighbone and several weeks of recovery after undergoing surgery Tuesday morning in Los Angeles, according to his doctor.

The operation repaired Schwarzenegger's fractured right femur, which he broke while skiing with his family in Sun Valley, Idaho, during the Christmas weekend.

"As is standard for this type of surgery, the governor will be kept for observation for three days," Dr. Kevin Ehrhart, the orthopedic surgeon who performed the operation, told the Associated Press, adding that the recovery period would last about eight weeks, and cables and screws would be used to secure his upper right thigh bone.

Schwarzenegger, 59, resumed his duties as governor at 10:45 a.m. and will still attend his second inauguration on Jan. 5, says his spokeswoman, Julie Soderlund.

Dr. Erhart, who also repaired former President Reagan's broken hip in 2001, said his new patient was "very comfortable."

Schwarzenegger was admitted to an undisclosed Los Angeles hospital Monday, after the accident, which was described by Adam Mendelsohn, the governor's deputy chief of staff for communications, in a statement that day.

"This morning while skiing with his family in Sun Valley, Idaho, Governor Schwarzenegger suffered a fracture to his right femur. After the accident the Governor was taken to a local hospital for X-rays and was soon discharged," said Mendelsohn, adding: "No one else was involved in the skiing accident."

Meanwhile, back in Sun Valley, says AP, there's a black diamond trail now dubbed "Arnold's Run" in honor of the former action star.